More foreign workers needed in US A shift in policy vs. migrant workers

“As employers clamor for more foreign-born workers…the percentage of immigrant workers (known here as alien workers) in the nation’s labor force has climbed to its highest level in seven decades”, according to a New York Times story submitted into the House Journal this week by Rep. Norman Palacios of Tinian.

“New figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics showed that the number of immigrant workers jumped to 15.7 million last year, up 17 percent from the three years earlier. Immigration analysts estimate that nearly 5 million of these are illegal immigrants.

“This influx–immigrants now represent 12 percent of the nation’s workers–is having profound effects on the work force and the economy, helping hold down wages in unskilled jobs and giving many companies the employees needed to expand.

“Immigrants are now a critical part of the labor force across the board”, said Demetrios Papademetriou, co-director of international migration policy at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. “We are in a new world of immigrants basically spreading throughout the economy. This is something that is going to continue and intensify”.

“Today, software companies, farmers, hotels and other employers desperate for workers are pressing Congress to enact legislation that admit hundreds of thousands of additional immigrants each year. The debate about immigrant workers has shifted considerably from five years ago when many politicians called for more restrictive policies.

“Economists and demographers see a continuing surge in immigrant workers unless there is a major economic downturn. Under existing quotas, about 800,000 immigrants enter the nation legally each year. An estimated 300,000 enter illegally”.

So what’s the point? The story says: “The idea is to ease Iowa’s population deficit, bringing in enough people to create a work force for a vibrant economy”.

The CNMI has, time and again, explained that the number of foreign workers in its work force is dictated by its economy. Apparently, it’s a difficult pill to chew by those who have used it as scare tactic tool to justify their protectionist labor-unions’ agenda. It’s bitter sweet irony to know that our argument is fast becoming the battle cry for industries across the country who need more foreign workers for expansion. It’s the economy, right?
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It’s dangerous to toy with the idea of capping the number of workers on any of the industries here. What if the tourism industry makes a huge come back requiring double the number of foreign workers in hotels and other tourist related businesses?

If it is driven by the vibrancy of a huge increase in the volume of business in any of the industries, then let it be. Otherwise, it’s a sure ticket to discouraging expansion and future investments in a resource poor archipelago. This isn’t a difficult equation to understand, is it?
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A student finally scored an “A” in the last three quarters of the school year. His excited parents asked what did it?–counseling and encouragement? Said he: “No, had to do it what after they’ve killed and nailed Him to the plus sign (cross) hanging on the wall at school”.